COIN Tour Diary: pt 1

by Liz Watts + Emma Watts 

Just in case you've been living under a rock: COIN released the DARN good album How Will You Know If You Never Try? a few weeks back and it's taking over our lives. We decided to keep you updated throughout this first  headlining tour of their's (cause we want you to burn with us) by having fans from all over document their concert experience. We've had these pals take over our Snapchat on their show day, send in videos + disposable photos from the concert, and write in about all their adoration for COIN.  We have a great love for this band and know how special they are to so many people. We couldn't be happier with the outcome of this project so far and can't wait to share more with everyone. Get involved with the diary here and follow us on Snapchat, Instagram and Twitter @honeypunchmag to keep up!

Hannah Rubin

The Sinclair • Cambridge MA • 5.3.17  

 In 2014, I saw Bastille live for the first time! Their opener Grizfolk was awesome, and I decided that I wanted to see them on their headline tour. COIN happened to be their opener, and I instantly fell in love with them. Unfortunately I live in New England, and the Boston date got snowed out. When I saw them that summer opening for Neon Trees, the boys knew who I was because I made a giant cutout of Chase's head! I would consider us friends ever since.

COIN's live shows are the best because no matter the venue or the diversity of the crowd, they always give their hardest like the world is watching them. Long story short, I've been to two pretty strange shows of theirs in Connecticut this year alone and I still had fun despite the circumstances. Also, it's been so cool to see Chase come out of his shell by dancing and interacting with the crowd more!

"Don't Cry, 2020" is one of my favorite songs off of their new album (besides Hannah, of course). It really resonates with me because I fear growing older, death, the inevitable. It's kind of ironic how the song tells you not to cry because everything will be alright, yet I always catch myself crying when it comes through my headphones. The tattoo was inspired by artwork released along with the song/on the back of their new Don't Cry! shirt. My favorite part about it is when I look at it, "alright!" is perfectly legible to me. COIN is my favorite band, and I wanted this reminder from them on my arm for forever.

The guys have never not come out to say hello to me and the other fans waiting. It is so kind of them to take the time to meet us, even if the show that night was their fourth one in a row. I'm almost postive Chase has come out every night this tour, and he's starting to get a line of people waiting to say hello/get a hug from him. Chase, Ryan, Joe, and Zach really try to make it a point to us fans that we really do make a difference in their lives. We wouldn't be doing this without them, and they wouldn't be doing it without us! I will love them forever and ever." 

Karli Hineline

4.29.17  • The A & R Bar • Columbus, OH

My name is Karli, and I am twenty years old. I’m a bit of a concert addict after going to my first one about a year and a half ago, but that’s not the concert that matters. The concert that matters is the one that took place at A&R Music Bar in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio. Although I didn’t meet up with any mutuals, I brought along my best friend who I converted into a COIN fan after their show on February, 17th, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. We were absolutely stoked to see them live again; a trip that we actually made plans for on the drive home from our first COIN show, then ordered tickets for it the next morning.

A COIN show leaves the audience with a feeling that I have never encountered before. To say that the band has a wonderful energy is an absolute understatement. I’ve seen bands with a lot of energy (I’ve been to three The 1975 concerts), but a COIN show is almost indescribable. When you go to a COIN show, you don’t feel as though you’ve just been to a performance, per se. A performance is when someone shows off a skill for you and you politely listen and then clap for them once it’s over. When you go to a COIN show, you are 100% engaged, singing and dancing along and feeding off of Chase’s energy. I think it’s fair to say that Chase is a literal ball of infectious energy that you just can’t help but catch. From his smooth lyrics, his enthusiastic dancing, facial expressions, and his way of working a crowd, you can’t help but grin. I also think this has something to do with the small venues that they play at. A&R is a really tiny venue and my friend and I were two rows from the stage. Chase has a way of making everyone in the room feel as though he is singing right to them, and I think that has a lot to do with how intimate of a place we were at. You don’t get that with a lot of other shows.

This tour, my favorite live song from How Will You Know If You Never Try was by far Malibu 1992. I was already a fan of the song from their 1992 EP, but there was something different, something more to it when they played it in Columbus. Of course the crowd scream-sang when the lyric “…your parents’ house in Ohio…” came around since we Ohioan’s have a lot of pride, but it wasn’t even that that really made it special. I don’t know what it was about that song, but the crowd spent most of it singing louder than Chase. At the end, you could tell that he was overwhelmed by the support. During the final notes, Chase climbed onto the lip of the stage and when the notes faded out, he stood there in awe, hands running through his hair and down his face. I got this on video and to my delight, the official COIN twitter page retweeted it and I’m still getting notifications about it! That moment left me breathless and I felt so fortunate to have been able to witness it for myself.

One thing that also sets a COIN show apart and that only happens at a COIN show is how welcome you feel by the band. As I said, this was my second COIN show, and I have been able to meet them both times, without having to pay for a VIP ticket. This amazes me. What is even better is how humble and kind and grateful they all are. At my first COIN show, I was able to have a long conversation with Chase and Joe and at this show, it was nothing different. This time however, I had a big request of Chase. As I went in for a hug, I asked him if he could do something for me. When he said agreed, I asked if he would write out ‘HWYKIYNT?’ for me so that it could be my next tattoo. Upon hearing this, his eyes got wide and he said “I can, yeah. Oh wow!” and he wrote it out for me. When someone from the crew tried to hurry him along, he said “no, dude, this is really important to her” and for some reason, when he said this, I couldn’t stop smiling. You could tell from the urgency in his voice that he understood how much this meant to me. I just kept thanking him over and over and when he was done, he came over and hugged me and thanked me. Whenever I think of the moments where I met any of the boys from COIN, my heart gets so full because I know that they care about their fans and they are grateful for us as much as we are grateful for them. If you ever get the chance to see COIN live, I very highly recommend it, and I hope to see you there! As Chase said that night, “Thank you Columbus. This has been a night I will never forget. 

Annika Rasmussen

Volapalooza • Knoxville TN • 4.28.17

Sophie Minello

COIN + crowd singing "I Would".

COIN TOUR DIARY PT 2 here.